Individual Model Hospital Policy Recommendations & Toolkit Links

PURPOSE: These policy recommendations are designed to give basic information and guidance to prenatal professionals who wish to revise policies that affect the breastfeeding mother. Rationale and references are included as education for those unfamiliar with current breastfeeding recommendations. When no reference is available, the interventions recommended are considered to be best practice as determined by consensus of the Inland Empire Breastfeeding Coalition.

Policy #2: Nurses, certified nurse midwives, physicians and other health professionals with expertise regarding the benefits and management of breastfeeding should educate pregnant and postpartum women when the opportunity for education exists, for example, during prenatal classes, in clinical settings, and at discharge teaching.

Policy #3: The hospital will encourage medical staff to perform a breast exam on all pregnant women and provide anticipatory guidance for conditions that could affect breastfeeding. Breastfeeding mothers will have an assessment of the breast prior to discharge and will receive anticipatory guidance regarding conditions that might affect breastfeeding.

Policy #4: Hospital prenatal staff should support the mother’s choice to breastfeed and encourage exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months.

Policy #5: Nurses, certified nurse midwives, and physicians should encourage new mothers to hold their newborns skin to skin during the first two hours following birth and as much as possible thereafter, unless contraindicated.

Policy #6: Mothers and infants should be assessed for effective breastfeeding. Mothers should be offered instruction in breastfeeding as indicated.

Policy #7: Artificial nipples and pacifiers should be discouraged for healthy, breastfeeding infants.

Policy #8: Sterile water, glucose water, and artificial milk should not be given to a breastfeeding infant without the mother’s informed consent and/or physician’s specific order.

Policy #9: Mothers and infants should be encouraged to remain together during the hospital stay.

Policy #10: At discharge, mothers should be given information regarding community resources for breastfeeding support.

1. Save the above toolkit evaluation to your computer. 2. Open the document in Microsoft Word and fill in your responses. 3. Once finished, save the document. 4. Send an E-mail to the Breastfeeding Program and attach your completed questionnaire-OR- Click HERE to open your default E-mail application and attach your completed questionnaire.